Wolfpack connections overflow in High Point courtroom

July 15, 2011

By Bill Krueger

Superior Court Judge Ron Spivey ’82 couldn’t resist showing a bit of Wolfpack pride in his High Point courtroom this week when a young woman being considered for the jury said she had recently graduated from NC State.

“Outstanding, congratulations,” Spivey told the young woman.

The judge refrained from further Wolfpack talk, not wanting anyone to think he had unduly influenced the woman in case she was chosen for the jury.

But when assistant district attorney, Walt Jones ’86, started his questions, he told the young woman that Judge Spivey was also a graduate of NC State. Not only that, Jones said, he and and the defense attorney, Georgia Nixon ’87, were both graduates of NC State.

“Wow, what a coincidence,” Spivey told us when we talked by telephone this afternoon. “Even though we have a lot of alums who went to law school, it’s rare to get that combination of prosecutor, defense attorney and judge all at one time. It certainly has not happened in my career.”

Spivey said other members of the jury had a good laugh about all the NC State connections in the courtroom.

“A lot of time people don’t think of NC State and attorneys in the same thought,” Spivey said. “But we really do have a lot of lawyers and doctors and professions that people don’t think about when they think of NC State.”

When trials are completed, Spivey typically gives the jury foreperson a ceremonial pin to thank them for their service. Following this trial, Spivey gave a pin to the juror who had recently graduated from NC State.

“It was a good experience for her,” Spivey said.

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